Getting Back On Track

Having overlooked what we advise clients to do, i.e. blog at least once a week, for a little while we are now turning our attention back to the Thought Shower blog.  The learning from this is that keeping a twitter feed active is much easier (click on the button on the homepage to follow us on twitter) and that we need to dedicate time to the blog even when things are really busy.

So what’s been going on in the world of environment policy?  Is Brussels still standing?  Well, the answer is a resounding ‘yes’.  The new European Commissioners are now in office and work has begun in earnest.  We are watching the new Climate Commissioner and the Research and Innovation Commissioner with great interest.  Also Commissioner Potocnik who moved from Research to Environment.

The (Research &) Innovation Commissioner has said she wants to create an ‘Innovation Union’ in Europe.  She seems at least to be embracing the idea that innovation should be a horizontal issue across the whole Commission and not just in DG Research.  I’ve just discovered a new blog by an old colleague Nigel Griffiths.  I met Nigel ten years ago when I was a journalist on the introduction of the euro and we’ve kept in touch.  You can read him at http://www.innovationeu.org, home of Innovation Europe, a new publication on innovation which we’re working with for one of our clients.

So what else is new?  Ellie Haag finished her internship and went on to work for an organisation which looks at how business fits into society, an interesting initiative for sure.  And we are working really well with our Network.  There’s so much expertise to draw on within the Network and we are learning by doing, finding the best way to make the most of this great resource.  There is still lots of interest in Sustainability Consult and as such new business is good.  Just one of the new projects we are currently working on is for Oxfam which we’re very excited about.

That’s a quick catch-up.  We are now back on track with the blog.  And the photo?  I just took it.  It’s the sunrise looking down to the sea over the Spanish countryside.  And the socks?  Well, the less we say about the socks the better.